The Rowan Purelife yarn from Blue-faced Leicester sheep is fabulous--it feels more like merino. A joy to knit with. Other reviewers complained of a sheepy smell but my skeins are virtually free of odor.

I picked up my jacket today at my yarn store; there were several people there and they all loved it. It is so soft and "cuddly" I highly recommend this yarn.
I saw one review that stated that the Jacob color of this yarn was not soft. I would really like to make this coat/jacket again in one of the other colors and hope someone else writes about other colors and how they feel.

I knitted the Jacket shown in the book Amber instead of using the Cashsoft chunky I used the Purelife. I made the coat/jacket using #950. It was one of the best to knit with yarns I have ever used.The more I worked with it the softer it got! My LYS blocked and put it all together for me. I got sick and haven't been able to go pick it up; however Jennifer said it is so soft she would like to sleep in it!
I want to make another jacket out of this yarn, but would like to know if any of you did anything with cables in the darker shades and how they showed up?? email me at mimim@hargray.com

I used this yarn in the Jacob color (from the Jacob sheep). It is rougher or I should say more rustic feel than the BFL (compared to the BFL) BUT I really like it a lot. Knits up beautifully. Had to rip out several rows (wasn't paying attention) without any problems at all. Shows off stitch patterns very nicely. Has a really nice feel to it. I found a pattern on Ravelry designed using this yarn. It's a unisex pattern "Hill Country Hat" (London Beanie style with a subtle pattern). I was able to knit this up in 2 evenings after work with time to spare. I have also knit the DK version of this yarn (fingerless mitts) with the same wonderful results. They both show off cables and other patterns in the knitting beautifully. I can't say enough about how my finished projects have turned out. The Jacob color really has a rich look to it. You can't beat the price either. I will say that if you plan to wear what you are knitting against your skin - go with the BFL colors but for a hat, cold weather scarf or sweater - any of the other breeds would be great. I plan to knit something in colorwork with this yarn. Won't have to worry about colors bleeding as these are natural wool colors. Will definitely purchase more in the future.